Nobody's Home
by jayhogartismyangel
Summary: Clare Edwards made a committment to no boyfriends in her sophmore year. Dedicated to her schooling, her friends, her part in the drama club's play, family, and photography club. Until a new boy named Eli moves in next door. Summary inside


**Nobody's Home**

**Summary: Clare Edwards made a committment to no boyfriends in her sophmore year. Dedicated to her schooling, her friends, her part in the drama club's play, family, and photography club, she thinks that it's easy. Until a new boy named Eli moves in next door. Attracted to the new boy, she forgets all about her goal for that year and falls hard. But what happens when she figures out that Eli holds dark secrets and how far will she go to protect and save him?**

**Cast/Characters/Pairings-Couples: Clare Edwards, Eli, OCs Kara Kaitlin and Damien Malcom, others throughout/etc. EClare, Dolly J, etc/others throughout maybe.**

**Prologue**

Clare Edwards giggled as she ran out of her house with her best friend, Alli Bhandari. Her best friend's brother, Sav was planning on driving the two girls, Connor, Dave, and Wesley to the town's community pool. Since none of them had a pool of their own, Sav had offered to take them there since he was going there to meet some of his friends anyway.

All morning though, Alli had been rather distracted by the big, black and orange moving truck at the house next door to the Edwards'. It had taken Alli five minutes to actually believe Clare when she said that she had no clue who was moving in.

"I bet you that some sexy, preppy boy is moving in next door! Oooh! or maybe an underwear model!" Alli was saying eagerly as she gazed up at Clare with dark, huge, and hopeful eyes.

The blue eyed girl scoffs and rolls her eyes. "I doubt it Alli." She commented seriously. "It's probably an older couple who won't even _have _kids of any age in their family. My parents and I are the youngest people who live around here anyway. Which, you know, kinda sucks but...what can ya do?"

The black haired girl smirks and quirks a brow, dark eyes glinting happily as she looked at her best friend. "Oh really?" She asks in amusement, eyes landing to the driveway of the house next door.

Clare sighed and rolled her blue eyes before she looked to the driveway where Alli was looking. Her eyes widened to dramatic proportions when she saw a boy-a rather attractive, totally _hot _boy walk briskly over to the moving truck and grab a few boxes. Clare didn't realized that she'd stopped right in the middle of the sidewalk to stare at the boy until Alli laughed beside her amusedly.

"Seems to me that you're forgetting your committment or goal or whatever" The black haired girl says, gesticulating wildly, "To remain boyfriend free for this school year." Alli sounds smug, almost like she's expected it.

The other girl glares at her friend playfully, lips quirking upward. "I have no plan to forget that goal." Clare says as a small frown thins out the curve of her mouth. "I mean...after what happened last year with KC...I just...I'm not ready for a relationship."

Alli blinks at her strangely, almost sadly before she burst into insane laughter, head thrown back as she bends over a bit, resting her small hands agains her jeaned knee. "_Suuure!" _She drawls out, jumping back up to her original height. Tears of laughter are in her eyes and she's shaking a bit in her amusement. "That's why you totally went to town on Wesley's neck just a few months ago during seven minutes in heaven at Connor's house."

Clare rolls her eyes at her friends unneeded comment and sighs. "I'm never gonna live that down, am I?"

Alli only giggles and shakes her head in affirmation to Clare's comment.

"Excuse me?" A distinctively male voice says hesitantly. "Are you two my new next door neighbors?"

The two girls eyes shoot up torwards the sound of the voice and they both flush at the sight of the boy they'd just been talking about standing right infront of them.

Alli seems to gain her barings first and has to smile when she notices how this nameless boy and her friend are staring at one another. "I'm not but Clare here is." She says, finally gaining his attention but only for a few moments. She has to strain herself not to giggle as she watches the boys eyes flicker back to Clare and shimmer happily as he grins at her.

"It's nice to meet you." He says, smiling sincerly as he sticks out one pale, long fingered hand for Clare to shake. My name's Eli Richardson. I just moved in with my stepfather, mother, and my younger brother and sister."

Clare smiled back at him and placed her tiny, lightly tanned hand in his. "I'm Clare Edwards. That's Alli Bhandari. It really is nice to meet you. Not to mention a relief to have someone close to my age living around here. Everyone else is older."

Eli laughs deeply at her words, still seemingly lost in her eyes. "Likewise. Last place I lived, I was the oldest kid around there. I didn't have many people to spend time with. Hopefully now things will change."

**To be continued...**

**Next Chapter: Clare and Alli invite Eli (and his younger siblings) to go swimming with them. School begins, classes and clubs, run-ins and new friends.**


End file.
